Two young men are left by their miserly fathers in the care of two not-so-attentive servants with disastrous results. Scapino! has everything you want in a comedy.

600 Wolfe St. 703-683-0496www.thelittletheatre.com

METROSTAGE

Mahalia A Gospel MusicalJanuary 21 to March 14

A musical biography of Mahalia Jackson, Mahalia chronicles the life of “The Queen of Gospel Music” from her beginnings in the segregated South to her debut at Carnegie Hall. Starring Bernadine Mitchell, winner of the 2005 Helen Hayes Award for this role.

1201 N. Royal St. 703-548-9044www.metrostage.org

SIGNATURE THEATRE

Show BoatThrough January 17

Signature Theatre reinvents this American classic in a brand new production that features such beloved songs as Make Believe, Can’t Help Lovin Dat Man and Ol’ Man River. Spanning the years 1880 to 1927, this musical highlights the lives, loves and heartbreaks of three generations of show folk on the Mississippi.

I Am My Own WifeThrough March 7

Winner of the 2004 Pulitzer Prize and the 2004 Tony Award for Best Play, I Am My Own Wife tells the fascinating real-life story of Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, a German transvestite who managed to survive both Nazi rule and the repressive East German Communist regime. The one-man show stars Helen Hayes Award-winner Andrew Long.

4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington 703-820-9771www.signature-theatre.org

ARENA STAGE CRYSTAL CITY

Stick FlyThrough February 7

Kent LeVay invites his fiance, Taylor, to meet his parents at their luxurious Martha’s Vineyard summer home. Taylor, under the microscope and unaccustomed to the surrounding wealth, challenges the household dynamic. Conflict and dysfunction ensue as playwright Lydia Diamond (The Bluest Eye), astutely examines African American social aristocracy in this thought-provoking and lively family comedy.